Tuesday, February 28, 2012California Leads In Renewable Energy AttractivenessA new study released Tuesday from Ernst & Young finds that the State of California led the nation in terms of its attractiveness to renewable energy investments in 2011. According to the report, which ranked U.S. states for investments in wind, solar energy, geothermal energy, California led the nation in energy projects. The report said California's favorable regulatory environment, offtake prices, and incentives ranked the state first in wind energy and installation of solar energy projects in (More info...)
posted on Tuesday, February 28, 2012(Full story)
Fisker Automotive Names New CEOAnaheim-based Fisker Automotive is in a management shuffle, saying today that it has named Tom LaSorda as its new CEO and Vice Chairman, with former CEO and founder Henrik Fisker becoming Executive Chairman of the company. LaSorda just joined Fisker in December, having previously served as CEO, President and Vice Chairman of the Chrysler Group, in addition to experience at General Motors. Fisker also said that Chairman Ray Lane will become lead director of the firm, serving as Chairman of the bo (More info...)
posted on Tuesday, February 28, 2012(Full story)
JibJab, Toyota Settle LawsuitLos Angeles-based humor website JibJab and automaker Toyota have settled a lawsuit, filed in March of last year, which had claimed that Toyota had infringed on JibJab's copyrighted viral videos and trademark in a Presidents Day sale ad. According to reports, the firms will each pay their own costs and attorney's fees. No other details of the settlement were released. Toyota's advertisements incorporated elements which, to a layman, are strongly reminiscent of JibJab's Founding Father's Rap--inc (More info...)
posted on Tuesday, February 28, 2012(Full story)
MindJolt Becomes Social Gaming NetworkLos Angeles-based Mindjolt, the developer of casual games which is now being run by MySpace co-founder Chris DeWolfe, has renamed itself Social Gaming Network (SGN). The firm said the move corresponds with a new focus on its business, which now includes a significant number of Facebook and mobile titles. The company's top titles include Fluff Friends Rescue, Jewels of the Amazon, Bubble Atlantis, Skies of Glory, FAST, MindJolt, and Lil Flippers. The company reports it has seen a growth of 300 pe (More info...)
posted on Tuesday, February 28, 2012(Full story)
OnGreen Ties With Chinese Science ParkLos Angeles-based OnGreen, the online marketplace for clean technology deals and companies, said this morning that it has partnered with a Chinese operator of a science and technology park. OnGreen said it has partnered with Zhongguancun Science Park (Z-Park), which operates a science and technology center housing more than 20,000 companies, to help match clean technology companies between Chinese companies and the rest of the world. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. OnGreen has be (More info...)
posted on Tuesday, February 28, 2012(Full story)
GoodRx Gets Funding, Launches Drug Comparison SiteSanta Monica-based GoodRx, a new startup backed by Founders Fund, GRP Partners, Highland Capital, SV Angel, Lerer Ventures, Dawn Lepore (drugstore.com), and Mike Ovitz, has launched its services, saying that it will allow users to compare pricing from pharmacies nationwide via its service and iPhone app. The startup--headed by Doug Hirsch--allows consumers to enter the name of a prescription price and zip code, to get the best prices for brand name and generic drugs, either locally or via mail o (More info...)
posted on Tuesday, February 28, 2012 (More)(Full story)
NantWorks Buys Boston Life LabsLos Angeles-based Nantworks, the new business incubator run by billionaire Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, said today that it has acquired another company, Boston Life Labs. Financial terms of the buy were not disclosed. NantWorks said it will rename the Boston Life Labs, a developer of systems for remote monitoring of patient biometric data, as NantCare. Boston life Labs' products include hardware and software to measure blood pressure, blood sugar, weight, medication management and other key indicato (More info...)
posted on Tuesday, February 28, 2012(Full story)
WD, Twentieth Century Fox, and Warner Bros. Link On Digital MoviesIrvine-based hard drive maker Western Digital, and Los Angeles-based studios Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment and Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group, along with flash storage maker SanDisk, said today they have created a new organization called the Secure Content Storage Association (SCSA). According to the firms, the new group is working on "Project Phoenix", an effort to develop standards around transferring premium, high definition content to local and portable hard drives and flas (More info...)
posted on Tuesday, February 28, 2012(Full story)
Ceres Closes IPOThousand Oaks-based Ceres, the developer of seed stock for energy crops, said today that it has closed its IPO, selling a total of 5,750,000 shares of its common stock at $13.00 per share. The firm said its underwriters exercise their full option to purchase an additional 750,000 shares of common stock from the company as part of the IPO. Ceres debuted last Wednesday on the Nasdaq Global Market as CERE. The firm's IPO was underwritten by Goldman Scahs & Co., Barclays Capital, Piper Jaffray, Raym (More info...)
posted on Tuesday, February 28, 2012(Full story)
iRise Takes On iPhone AppsEl Segundo-based iRise, the developer of enterprise application prototyping tools, is taking on the iPhone app market, saying today that it has launched a new visualization product called iRise Studio MX, which allows users to create iPhone app prototypes. The firm said the new app allows customers to design and build prototypes of applications, without requirements for coding or scripting of any kind. iRise's products are used by companies to mock up screen layouts and inputs for actual applica (More info...)
posted on Tuesday, February 28, 2012(Full story)
Demand Media Launches New Social Ad UnitsLooking to enhance the advertising units on its network of sites, Santa Monica-based Demand Media said today that it has launched a new set of "social feed ads" to its advertisers. Demand Media said its new Social Feed ad management tools allow its advertisers to deliver customized, social media content via live rich media ads. Demand Media said the new tools integrate custom, real-time social feeds into rich media ads featuring video, audio, Flash, and HTML5. The firm said the ads can include l (More info...)
posted on Tuesday, February 28, 2012(Full story)
GraphEffect Revs Facebook Ad Management PlatformSanta Monica-based GraphEffect, the developer of social marketing software which helps advertiser manage their advertising on Facebook, said this morning that it has launched a significant update to its platform. The firm--which is headed by James Borow--said its new, GraphEffect 2.0 software includes features to help brands identify "engaging and valuable content" on Facebook, turning that content into paid ads; tools to help determine how to make ads more viral; and a feature for recommending (More info...)
posted on Tuesday, February 28, 2012(Full story)
AnyDATA Appoints COOIrvine-based AnyDATA, a developer of wireless modules, Wi-Fi routers, white label smartphone and tablets, and other products, said this morning that it has named Ulrich Gottschling as its Chief Operating Officer. Gottschling was previously the CFO of SRS Labs, and also has served at Valor Computerized Sytsems, Inc., E4ENET.com, and Sound Source Interactive. Gottschling has been CFO of the company since November 2011.
posted on Tuesday, February 28, 2012(Full story)